Airfield lighting fixture



INVENTOR March 20, 1962 c. H. J. ANDERSON ETAL 3,026,408

AIRFIELD LIGHTING FIXTURE Filed March '7, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 n# a x N mm E CHARLES HENRI JOSEPHk ANDERSON ANTONIUS PETRUBSY GERARDUS FRIEDERICHS Msn/L gi n@ DMN 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 March 20, A 1962 Filed March 7, 1960 (Y gil INVENTOR CHARLES HJ ANDERSON ANTONIUS P.G.FR|EDER|CH'5 AGE T United States Patent() 3,026,408 AIRFIELD LIGHTING FIXTURE Charles Henri Joseph Anderson and Antonius Petrus Gerardus Friederichs, Eindhoven, Netherlands, assignors to North American Philips Company, Inc., New York, N.Y., a corporation of Delaware Filed Mar. 7, 1960, Ser. No. 13,130 Claims priority, application Germany Mar. 14, 1959 S Claims. (Cl. 24o-1.2)

This invention relates to ttings, in particular for aireld lighting systems, containing a lamp the lightsource of which is arranged at least approximately in the focus of each of two reilectors reilecting in substantially opposite directions.

Such ttings are used, for example, as landing-direction lights on airlields, that is to say, for indicating the runway boundaries. As a rule, in such ttings the rellectors must be capable of tilting or rotating in the horizontal and vertical planes, respectively, through about i3, while the light source, for example the iilament of an incandescent lamp or the short arc of a gas-discharge lamp, must remain as far as possible in the foci of the two reilectors. However, for this purpose the rellectors must slightly embrace the lamp so that it is not simply exchangeable.

The present invention provides a simple solution of the said problems in a fitting of the kind described in the opening part, in that each reliector is mounted on a slide which is displaceable approximately in the direction of the rellector axis, the two slides being connected to one another by draw springs. By moving the slides outwards against the force of the draw springs, the lamp is exposed and can be removed without ditculty. Preferably a locking device is provided to hold each slide in its outer position. This enables the lamp to be exchanged by one person.

In order to permit the adjustment of the reflector in the horizontal plane, according to a further feature or" the invention each reilector is secured by means of stay members to a support mounted for rotation on a slide. Preferably, the edge of the rotary support facing the lamp is circular, while, in the operative position of the slides, the centre of this circle coincides with the lamp axis. ln a suitable embodiment, the circular edge of the support engages abutment studs which are secured to the slide and are likewise arranged in a circle about the lamp axis.

If, according to a further feature of the invention, the draw springs are secured to the supports, the advantage is obtained that the supports are drawn against the abuty ment studs of the slides ensuring that, in the operative position of the slides, the foci of the rellectors always coincide with the light-source; in addition, the draw springs secured to the supports connect the two slides to one another through the cams and the abutment studs 'and hold them in their working positions.

The invention will now be described more fully with reference to an embodiment shown in the drawing.

FlG.-l shows a longitudinal sectional view of Ya litting in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 2 is a section on the line II-II of FIG. l. Centrally of a through-shaped frame of a lighting ritting, an incandescent lamp 3 having a lament 4 is secured to a brace 2. Two parallel reectors a and 5b (in FIGURE 2 the reflector 5b is omitted for the sake of clearness) cooperate with an incandescent lamp 3, the foci of these rellectors substantially coinciding with the centre of the filament 4 in the operation of the fitting. The rellectors 5a and 5b are mounted in frames 6a and 6b respectively, the frames being secured to platefshaped supports 9a and 9b by means of arms 7a and 7b and ice stay members 8a and 8b, respectively. The stay members 8a and 8b either are integral with the supports 9a and 9b and are bent from the support planes, or these stays are manufactured separately and secured to the supports 9 by riveting, welding or the like. The supports 9a and 9b are mounted on slides 10a and 10b respectively which can be displaced in the direction of the rellector axis along a bent edge 11 of the frame 1. The slides 10a and 10b are guided by strips 12 secured to the edge 11 by means of screws.

Each slide 10a and 10b is provided with two apertures 13a and 13b through each of which are passed two lugs 14a and 14b bent from the supports 9a and 9b. Each lug 14a is connected to the opposite lug 14b by a draw spring 15. The ends of the draw spring 15 are designed as eye hooks and engage in holes in the lugs 14a and 14b.

Edges 16a and 16b respectively of the supports, which edges face the lamp 3 are circular; the centres of these circles are situated in the lamp axis X-X. By the draw springs 15 the edges 16 of the supports are urged against abutment studs 17a and 17b which are likewise arranged in a circle about the lamp axis X-X. At their upper ends, these studs have thickened portions. Furthermore, the supports 9 are each connected to a slide 10 by means of screws 19a and 19b passing through slots 18a and l18b respectively.

By means of the studs 17, the forces o the draw springs 15 acting upon the supports 9 are also transmitted to the slides 10a and 10b, so that the latter are drawn against stops 20 arranged centrally of the tting. The tensions of the draw springs 15 are chosen so that in this position the slides 10 are lixed substantially immovably. In the operative condition of the fitting, the reectors occupy positions shown for the reflector 5b in FIGA. It will be apparent that the reflector 5b slightly embraces the lamp 3, so that the latter cannot be simply removed from its iitting. In order to render the lamp 3 accessible, the slides 10 together with the reectors 5 are drawn outwards against the tension of the springs 15 away from the lamp 3 into a position shown by the reflector 5a. In order to ensure that the slides 10 remain in these outer positions, at each of the bent up edges 21a and 2lb of the slides 10a and 10b, provision is made of a stop pawl 22a and 22b respectively secured thereto by screws, which pawls catch behind the edge 11 of the frame 1. In these outer positions of the slides, the lamp 3 is readily accessible. When the reflectors 5 must be returned totheir operative positions, the pawls 22 are lifted and the slides 10 are moved back by the draw springs 15 so as to engage the stops 20.

lf one of the reflectors 5 must be turned in the horizontal plane, the corresponding screw 19 is loosened and the support 9 moved past the pins 17. Since the edge 16 of the support 9 extends along a circle having the lamp axis X-X as its centre, the foci of the reflectors 5 always remain at the centre of the filament 4 in spite of the rotation of the support 9. Thus, the supports 9 turn about the lamp axis X--X and hence about the centre of the lament 4. After the supports 9 have been adjusted, they are again locked by tightening the screws 19.

The reflectors 5 can also be tilted in the vertical plane, if the -arms 7 are hinged to the stay member 8. In order to ensure that in this case also the foci of the rellectors 5 remain at the centre of the filament 4, the tilting axes of the arms 7 `about the stays 8 must coincide with an axis passing through the centre of the lilament 4 at right angles to the lamp axis X-X. (This is not the case in the drawing, but it can be simply effected by providing the stays 8 with extensions.)

The tting need not be equipped with an incandescent lamp but it may be provided with a small gas-discharge lamp, for example a discharge lamp having an envelope similar to the bulb of the incandescent lamp'.

In practice, the fitting is further provided with a dei tween the open smaller ends thereof, a separate slide member on which each of said reectors is mounted for movement along an common to the two reflectors, and resilient means coupling the slide members for positioning the reflectors relative ,to the light source so that the light source is approximately at the foci thereof.

2. 'A lighting fixture for a. light source adapted for airfield lighting systems comprising a pair of reflectors each having an outwardly flaring open end and open at the smaller end, said light-source being positioned at least approximately at the foci of the reflectors between the open smaller ends thereof,r a separate slide member on which each of said reflectors is mounted for movement along an common to the two reflectors, resilient means coupling the slide members for positioning the reflectors relative to the light source so that the light source is approximately at the foci thereof,.-a support for said slide members, and looking means lassociated with each of said slide members which engage said support when said slide members are at positions remote from the light source.

3. A lighting fixture for a light source adapted vfor airfield lighting systems comprising a pair of concave reflecalong an axis common to the two reflectors, resilient Y means coupling the slide members for positioning the reectors relative to the light source so that the light source is approximately at the foci thereof, a support, and pawl means operatively associated with each of said slide members which lock the latter to said support when said slide members are at positions remote from the light source.

4. A lighting fixture for a light source adapted for airfield lighting systems comprising a pair of concave reflectors each having an outwardly flaring open end and open Iat the smaller end, said light-source being positioned at least approximately at the foci of the reflectors between the open smaller ends thereof, a support for each of said reflectors, a separate slide member on which each of said reflector supports is rotatably mounted for movement along an axis common to the two reflectors, and resilient means coupling the slide members for positioning the reflectors relative to the light source so that the light source is approximately at the foci thereof.

5. A lighting fixture for a light source having a given axis adapted for airfield lighting systems comprising a pair of concave reflectors each having an outwardly flaring open end and open at the smaller end, said light-source being positioned at least approximately at 4the foci of the reflectors between the open smaller ends thereof, a pivotally mounted support for each of said reflectors, each of said supports having a circular edge concentric with the Vof the light source, a separate slide member on which each of said reflector supports is mounted for movement along an axis common to the two reflectors, and resilient means coupling the slide members for positioning the reflectors relative to the light source so that the light source is approximately at the foci thereof.

6. 'A lighting fixture for a light source having a given axis adapted for airfield lighting systems comprising a pair of concave reflectors each havingan outwardly flaring open end and open at the smaller end, said light-source being positioned at least approximately at the foci of the reflectors between the open smaller ends thereof, a pivotally mounted support for each of said reflectors, each of said supports having a circular edge concentric with the axis of the light source, `a separate slide member on which each of said reflector supports is mounted for movement along an axis common to the two reflectors, a plurality of stopmembers secured to said slide members and positioned in an arc concentric with the axis of the light source to engage the circular edges of said reflector supports, and resilient means coupling the slide members for positioning the reflectors relative to the light source for positioning the reflectors so that the light source is approximately at the foci thereof. p y

7. A lighting fixture for a light source adapted for airfield lighting systems comprising a pair of reflectors each having an outwardly :flaring open end and open at the smaller end, said light-source being positioned at least lapproximately at the foci of the reflectors between the open smaller ends of the reflectors, a separate slide member on which each of said reflectors is mounted for movement along an axis common to the two reflectors, and resilient means secured to and coupling the slide members for positioning the reflectors relative to the light source so that the light source is approximately at the foci thereof. 8. A lighting fixture for a light source having a given i axis adapted for airfield lighting systems comprising a pair of concave reflectors each having an outwardly flaring open end and open at the smaller end, said light-source being positioned at least approximately at the foci of the reflectors between the open smaller ends thereof, a pivotally mounted support for each of said reflectors, each of said supports having a circular edge concentric with the axis of the light source, a separate slide member on which each of said reflector supports is mounted for movement along an axis common to the two reflectors,.a plurality of stop members secured to said slide members and positioned in an arc concentric with the light source to engage the circular edges of said reflector supports, and resilient means secured to and coupling the slide members for positioning the reflectors relative to the light source so that the light source is approximately at the foci thereof.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES Y PATENTS 1,440,552 POme'Oy Ian. 2, 1923 1,593,802 McBride July 27, 1926 2,408,470 Noel, et al i-.. Oct. l, 1946 2,719,967 DOIlley Oct. 4, 1955 FOREIGN PATENTS 111,603 Sweden Aug. 29, 1944 i i i 

